This weekend I got a text from my brother. He was asking for clarification on a question on which I was the expert. He was having a debate with our mother, and he wanted to know who was right. I gave him the answer. He responded, “Oh, so that means mom is right. Can I tell her what I said?” I laughed and told him to do what he needed to do.
This silly anecdote reminded me of another more serious issue that I have been pondering. There is wide gulf between looking to be right and looking for truth.
The difference amounts to a posture of humility. If I am searching the scriptures for a verse to prove a belief I already have, then I am looking to prove myself right. This is how we end up with bad interpretations of scripture. Let alone bad relationships caused by our desire to be ‘right.’ The issue is not in our search for information, nor is it in our desire to seek the right answer. But rather the problem lies in a posture that aims to justify ourselves.
If we seek answers for our questions with a spirit of humility, with the knowledge that we might be wrong, we are looking for truth. This is easier in our relationships too, as we approach discussions and debates with the possibility that we might be incorrect. This posture of seeking truth allows space for us to be wrong and ensures we are more gracious when we are correct.
The irony is that as we pursue truth we are also pursuing the righteousness of God.
Matthew 7: 7-8 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”
Roberta Writes 